


Once Upon A December

by moiyoko



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Fluff, M/M, Royalty
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-09
Updated: 2017-02-13
Packaged: 2018-09-15 21:38:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,479
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9258299
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/moiyoko/pseuds/moiyoko
Summary: Yuri!!! on Ice Anastasia AU.Victor as Anastasia. Yuuri as Dimitri. Yakov as Grandpapa. Otabek and Phichit as Vlad. JJ as Rasputin. Yurio as Sophie.The man was someone who Victor recognized but hadn’t seen for quite some time. JJ had been banished from ever coming to the Nikiforov home by both his father and his Grandpapa. Victor didn’t understand everything that had happened between the men but he knew that it was enough to end the years of friendship that they had shared. Victor looked at Grandpapa to see his reaction but only saw a stone cold gaze that followed JJ as he moved towards them.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> For Shreya. We've bonded through sin. This is your fault. I did what you asked.  
> "On 1/7/17, at 3:45 PM, Shreya wrote:  
> > no i suck, you write it"
> 
> Bug me on tumblr to update if you want.

Grandpapa was leaving Russia once more but this time it was to Barcelona. Victor hated the thought of Grandpapa leaving. It seemed that he had only just returned from his last trip but there was nothing Victor could do to stop it. Instead he was left to get ready for the ball that was being held to celebrate both Grandpapa’s return and departure. The balls were only ever fun for Victor to watch the many friends and family members dance around in such a manner it made him jealous. Of course he wanted to dance as they did but his Grandpapa said it would be best for him to learn when he was older and had grown into his body. Apparently his small frame wasn’t something to get used to as his body would change once he became a man. That’s what Grandpapa said at least.

Victor did his best to follow what he was told but he did sometimes sneak off to watch some of the other children practice their ballet and dancing in one of the many great rooms of his home. He just had to make sure it was done in secret or he would get scolded for acting secretive in his own home which would be seen as suspicious. What reason would a Nikiforov have to hide while in their own home? Victor liked to pretend he had many secrets but in all honesty the only secrets he had were between himself and Grandpapa, although he figured his parents were in on those as well.

Victor was in his nice black dress pants, a pair of shiny black shoes, and a freshly ironed white shirt paired with a red tie. Red was always the color he wore for Grandpapa because it created a twinkle in his eye that made Victor feel proud. It wasn’t a hard thing to do and Victor actually liked the color red more than any other color in the world. His tie had his initials sewn in gold so that no one could dare claim it belonged to them. Not that anyone would ever pass for him with his silvery hair that matched his mother’s. Grandpapa’s own hair looked similar but had lost some shine due to his age.

Once Victor deemed himself ready he hurried out of his room and through the halls to reach the ballroom. Even before he was there he could hear the music playing from the orchestra that his father had arranged for. He slowed down a bit just to spin and twirl for fun before he’d have to remain still next to his Grandpapa during the rest of the ball. He laughed to himself while he spun, pretending to have a partner to dance with before he composed himself to walk into the ballroom. 

He saw the many colors of the lady’s dresses moving gracefully around the ballroom as they moved in turn with the men. It was easy to just get lost in thought while watching them waltz about, which Victor had done plenty of times before. He didn’t have the chance this time as he heard his Grandpapa call his name from the top of the staircase to his right. Grandpapa was seated in a golden chair almost resembling a throne and watched Victor as he approached.

“I see you still enjoy watching the others dance.” Grandpapa said as he looked Victor up and down. Victor caught the twinkle in his eye at the sight of the red tie he had chosen.

“Yes.” Victor answered with a nod, “I am eagerly awaiting the time it is deemed fitting for me to learn how to dance. I’ll also be eagerly awaiting your return. It’s not fair that you’re leaving again so soon.” He looked down at his own shoes, thinking about how dull the home would be without Grandpapa.

Grandpapa sighed knowing that the conversation would be a repeat of the many others that happened before when he left to travel. “I know Victor but this time I have a surprise for you.” He offered with a smile.

That immediately caught Victor’s attention as he looked up at his Grandpapa questioning, “Really?” The excitement on his face was obvious enough that it made Grandpapa chuckle a bit. Surely the surprise wouldn’t be about learning to dance because he hadn’t grown enough just yet but Grandpapa never did disappoint with any sort of gifts or surprises.

“Yes but it will be our little secret.” Grandpapa said with a wink as he reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a small red velvet colored box. He held it out offering it to Victor and his eyes watched patiently to see his response.

Victor slowly reached for the box, not wanting to seem too impatient or eager, and held it in his hands. “Spasibo Grandpapa.” He said before he opened it to reveal a pendant. It was on a silver chain and in red lettering against a silver background it read “See You In Barcelona”. Victor raised his eyebrows in shock as he read the words. “Really Grandpapa?” he questioned in an excited tone.

“Yes, really.” Grandpapa replied. “You’ll be joining me there soon enough. It’s about time you joined me for a trip.”

“I can’t wait!” Victor said with a smile as he closed the box and clutched it tightly. This was better than learning how to dance because he wouldn’t have to be separated from his Grandpapa. On top of that he would finally be able to travel outside of St. Petersburg and visit somewhere new in the world.

“And don’t forget this.” Grandpapa added as he pulled out a small red and gold music box, “Our lullaby to keep you company for while I’m away. Your necklace is the key to make it work, without it no one will ever know what it is.”

Victor nodded and took it in his hands, all ready hearing the melody play in his head. Grandpapa was very creative when it came to finding a way to keep things a secret. Now he had two surprises and a grand trip to be excited about.

Before Victor could begin to imagine what other surprises Grandpapa would have in store for the trip the music in the ballroom abruptly halted and he saw a man walking amongst all the men and women dancing. They immediately moved out of his way, clearing a path for him to walk.

The man was someone who Victor recognized but hadn’t seen for quite some time. JJ had been banished from ever coming to the Nikiforov home by both his father and his Grandpapa. Victor didn’t understand everything that had happened between the men but he knew that it was enough to end the years of friendship that they had shared. Victor looked at Grandpapa to see his reaction but only saw a stone cold gaze that followed JJ as he moved towards them. 

Victor’s father soon appeared in the way of JJ’s path. JJ came to a stop, looking between Grandpapa and Victor’s father before a grin appeared on his face.

“You know better than to be here JJ. Leave at once while you can.” Victor’s father commanded, his loud voice reverberating in the ballroom for all to hear.

“What makes you think that you can get away with this Nikiforov? After all these years you think that you can just toss me aside?” JJ questioned, equally as loud.

Victor knew that they were both trying to be heard by everyone in attendance in order to prove a point. One could never back down from their word so it was best to make sure everyone heard and knew what you were willing to do.

“You know damn well what you did JJ. Now leave this house.” Victor’s father answered calmly, which only served to anger JJ even more.

“Humor me then and explain to everyone what happened.” JJ countered. The delightful mood that filled the ballroom previously was now replaced with an eerie feeling that something was about to go terribly wrong. The only answer JJ received was silence even though Victor was curious to know what happened. Surely not everyone in the room knew what happened but they probably knew well enough to mind their own business. 

“I’ll leave, but I swear on my life all of you Nikiforov’s will die by my hand. You will pay for what you have done to me!” JJ shouted as he unsheathed his sword and raised it towards Victor’s father. “You will regret what you’ve done to me and it will be your fault for what happens to them.” Slowly he backed away and moved out of the ballroom. 

Victor’s father had his hand on the hilt of his own sword that was at his side but didn’t remove it as JJ left. With a nod of his head though Victor watched as some men discreetly left the ballroom, likely to follow JJ and make sure that he never returned.

“Never fear my boy.” Grandpapa said to Victor, “Men like him never get far in life because they can’t be trusted.”

Victor only nodded in response as the orchestra began to play once more and dancers began to move about gracefully once more. The atmosphere returned to what it had been and it seemed as though everything regarding JJ had been forgotten.

While Grandpapa was away to Barcelona Victor did his best to keep busy while at home. He attended to his studies and did what was expected of him. It would have been the same as usual but he had heard some of the servants whispering about the people in the city. They were upset with the Nikiforov’s for some reason or another, which made no sense to Victor or anyone else in the household, but it was all word of mouth. Sometimes people said things to cause trouble so Victor ignored it.

Soon enough Grandpapa was back home from his trip and Victor enjoyed his presence. There were no more whisperings or rumors of what the people in the city were saying about the Nikiforov’s. Everything had been forgotten it seemed. 

Then one-night Victor was awakened by his mother’s worried voice, “My love you must wake up. We have to leave.”

“Hmmm?” Victor questioned, still half asleep and wondering why his mother was crouching beside his bed in complete darkness save for the flicker of light coming off from the candle she held.

“Get on your warmest coat quickly we have to leave now.” She said a little more sternly as she shook him a bit before removing his blankets.

Being exposed to the cold outside of his blankets woke him up a bit more and he realized this surely wasn’t any sort of game. “Yes Mama.” He sighed as he sat up and went over to his closet to get changed.

“You must be quick my darling. We don’t have much time.” She added as she stood and moved towards the door to his room, placing her ear against it.

Victor changed out of his night clothes and put on a shirt and pants before grabbing his warmest coat as his mother had instructed. He grabbed a pair of boots and slid his feet into them before moving towards his mother.

“What is going on?” he questioned as he tried to rub the sleep from his eyes.

“We must leave. It is not safe here. Stay close to me and we will meet with your Grandpapa.” She answered.

Victor nodded before she slowly opened the door and grabbed his hand. She lead the way through their large home with fast quiet footsteps while Victor did his best to keep up. He realized that everyone was leaving their rooms and heading the same way they were. Why it was no longer safe in their home he did not know but it didn’t seem right. Home was always a safe place to be. 

They were in the large ballroom when his mother started to move faster. Being quiet was no longer useful now as he could hear men shouting and gunfire from outside. It was then that he thought of his Grandpapa and remembered that his pendant necklace was still back in his room. 

“My necklace!” he yelled at his mother, who didn’t hear him as she continued to move forward. Victor yanked his hand from his mother’s grasp and took off sprinting back to his bedroom.

“Victor!” she called out, but by then there were so many others in the ballroom that her voice was drowned out with the pounding footsteps from inside the room.

Victor raced into his room and grabbed the red velvet box that held the necklace from Grandpapa. As he reached for his music box his mother appeared in the room.

“Victor!” she shouted as she slammed the door behind her and wrapped an arm around him.

“I couldn’t leave them.” He started to answer but he realized it didn’t matter as the gunshots got closer and he knew that the men were in the hallway. 

It was then that the wall opened, revealing a door and a small plump dark haired boy.

“You must leave now!” the boy said pointing inside the door he had emerged from, “This will take you to safety.”

Victor looked between the boy and his mother, unsure of what to do. He had never known there was a secret door in the wall of his room before but now didn’t seem to be the time to ask questions. His mother only stared at the dark haired boy as if weighing their options.

“Hurry!” the boy said, “There isn’t time for this!”

Victor’s mother pushed him forward before following after him. Victor held on tightly to the red velvet box and slipped it in his coat pocket. Before he could put away the music box though he realized that it had fallen to the floor after his mother had pushed him. It was too late now as the door in the wall was closed behind them and he heard the men yelling in his room. 

With his mother guiding him from behind and the faint outline of the candle creating a little light around his shadow he walked forward. He didn’t know if the dark haired boy was safe or not because while they traveled through the walls all he heard was destruction. It sounded as though the house was being torn apart and although he wasn’t there to see it that didn’t make it any harder to imagine.

The secret tunnel that they walked through soon came to an end outside of house and Victor was immediately grateful for his boots and warm coat. The ground was covered in snow and he could see his own breath. His mother immediately blew out the candle and tossed it aside before taking his hand to lead the way once more.  
They hurried towards the gardens, which Victor imagined would help them lose anyone who tried to follow them. As they started to cross the bridge that was just before the garden a cloaked figure appeared at the end holding a sword. They stopped in their tracks, unsure of who it was now blocking their path. 

“Give me the boy Nikiforov and you may be spared.” The cloaked figure said while waving the sword at them impatiently.

“Never.” Victor’s mother answered as she moved to stand in front of Victor. He was left to peer around his mother’s leg, now knowing that it was not a friend in front of them.

“You could live if you do.” The cloaked figure offered as they removed their hood, revealing that it was JJ who stood in their way.

Victor’s mother knelt down and faced Victor saying, “Hold tight.”

Before Victor could even nod his mother had picked him up and rushed over to the side of the bridge. The next thing he knew they were falling down, although it wasn’t a long fall, and he landed hard against his mother but knew she took the brunt of the fall as she let out a loud gasp. They had landed on the ice from the stream that ran beneath the bridge. Victor moved off his mother and stood up to help her to her feet as well.

“No!” JJ shouted from up on the bridge before he too jumped down to follow after them. 

Victor and his mother hadn’t moved too far away due to the slippery ice but Victor soon fell as JJ grabbed onto his ankle.

“You’re not going anywhere!” JJ shouted as he was laying on the ice, clutching onto Victor’s ankle to keep him from leaving.

“Let go!” Victor shouted as he tried to kick at JJ while his mother pulled on his hands to try to help him break free.

CRACK!

The sound made all three of them stop what they were doing as they looked at the ice below them. The cracks started forming from beneath JJ and were spreading out from under him towards Victor and his mother. The temperature under the ice was surely colder than what they were dealing with above it which made JJ quickly grab on tight to Victor.

“You’re coming with me!” JJ shouted in desperation, knowing that his weight alone was causing the ice to crack beneath him. 

“No!” Victor screamed as he slid closer to JJ. With the shortened distance between them Victor kicked as hard as he could landing a blow right on JJ’s face. This caused JJ to yell out in pain and loosen his grip just enough Victor’s mother to pull free him from his grasp. 

The ice finally gave way and Victor watched as JJ slid into the freezing cold. His mother tugged his hand and they slid their way across the ice towards the gardens once more. They moved as quickly as they could considering they didn’t want the ice to give way beneath them as well. Victor wasn’t sure how long they ran through the night but when they did finally stop he was greeted with hugs from both his father and Grandpapa.

He couldn’t stay awake long enough to hear what was going on and was soon fast asleep. When he did wake up he was greeted by Grandpapa with a bowl of warm stew. Victor quickly took the bowl and began eating it, grateful for the warmth it provided as well as something to fill his belly.

“We have to leave the country Victor. It’s time for us to go to Barcelona. Your mother and father are all ready on their way there.” Grandpapa finally said once Victor was done eating.

“They left me?” Victor questioned with tears in his eyes as he looked up at Grandpapa.

“Only to keep you safe.” Grandpapa answered, “It’s safer for us to travel separately.”

“That’s not safe.” Victor replied, “We all need to stay together.”

Grandpapa shook his head while mumbling something about not understanding but Victor did understand. How could they stay safe if they weren’t together? They were only safe with each other it seemed.

“We need to get going to the train station to leave for Barcelona.” Grandpapa stated as he stood up and walked towards the door.

Victor didn’t know what to say but knew it was best to do what Grandpapa asked of him so he got out of the bed he had slept in and followed. It seemed like Grandpapa was in a disguise though as he wore more layers than usual to try and hide his face. Victor was given a furry hunting hat to put on his head and was told to tuck his silver hair under it.

The walk to the train station seemed to take a long time but Victor had never been to the train station and after all the running he had done with his mother the previous night he felt like any distance was too great to travel by foot. 

There was a large crowd of people at the train station and Victor couldn’t make out much of anything with all the noise. He clutched Grandpapa’s hand and followed. It was getting dark meaning that the last of the trains were leaving the station, which accounted for all of the people there. Grandpapa moved towards the tracks before starting to hurry after one of the trains ahead that was just taking off. 

“Keep up my boy!” Grandpapa shouted as he pulled Victor along.

Victor did his best to keep up as it seemed with each step he took Grandpapa pulled him another two. He almost wondered if his feet were moving at all as they got closer to the slow moving train. Grandpapa jumped up onto the back of the train pulling Victor behind him but Victor was unable to get up onto the back of the train. His weight caused his Grandpapa to fall forward but the men on the back of the train grabbed onto him.

“Don’t let go!” Victor cried out.

“I won’t!” Grandpapa replied.

Just as Grandpapa started to reach out for Victor’s other hand to make it easier to pull him on board Victor hit into a pole on the edge of the platform. This sent Victor falling to the ground as Grandpapa lost his grip on him. The sight of his Grandpapa was the last thing Victor saw before everything went to black.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It was finally time to leave the orphanage. Technically Victor should have been kicked out once he turned eighteen but the babushka who ran the orphanage fell in love with his charm so she kept him there to help out with the younger kids. It also proved useful during the winters when he was the one sent out to chop wood in order to keep something burning in the stove. Hard times fell upon the orphanage though and he was now being sent away to work in the coal mines.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For Shreya. We've bonded through sin. This is your fault. I did what you asked.  
> "On 1/7/17, at 3:45 PM, Shreya wrote:  
> > no i suck, you write it"
> 
> Bug me on tumblr to update if you want. Sorry for the delay.

Ten Years Later

It was finally time to leave the orphanage. Technically Victor should have been kicked out once he turned eighteen but the babushka who ran the orphanage fell in love with his charm so she kept him there to help out with the younger kids. It also proved useful during the winters when he was the one sent out to chop wood in order to keep something burning in the stove. Hard times fell upon the orphanage though and he was now being sent away to work in the coal mines. He didn’t blame babushka for sending him away since he knew how much it pained her to do so but money was scarce and unlike himself the little ones couldn’t work for a living. He was twenty now so he had a good two extra years with babushka and the little ones. 

With only a small knapsack to his name and the clothes on his back Victor walked out the front door of the orphanage into the snow. The snow seemed appropriate as the seasons were slowly changing meaning that spring was on its way. Almost like a clean slate getting ready to start over like he was. Or rather having another new beginning. At least he had his jacket, hat, and scarf to keep him warm but his boots were a bit worn so they would have to survive the trip.

The little ones were busy waving to him from the windows as the babushka reminded him for the fourth time the way to go in order to get to the coal mine. He nodded his head as he walked out the door knowing that she would tell him ten more times if she had the chance to. The coal mine was expecting his arrival, which wasn’t surprising considering they always needed more workers. From what he was told they never ran out of space in the coal mines for people to come and work. Instead their problem was filling the coal mines. That didn’t sound very exciting.

Victor gave one last smile and wave to everyone before turning to begin his trek through the snow. There were only little snow flurries coming down but there was enough stuck on the ground to slow down any fast pace. As he walked through the snow he wondered what awaited him at the coal mine. He knew that he was going to make money but the labor would be more back breaking then he was used to. Mining for coal and having little kids play on his back were two different things. He didn’t really want to spend the rest of his life in a coal mine but he didn’t know what possibilities St. Petersburg would hold for him. 

There wasn’t a single coin to his name and he had no memories of his past. All he knew was that he was lucky the babushka had found him when she did and that he had a silver necklace with a pendant reading “See You In Barcelona” written in gold. Babushka had let him keep the necklace rather than trying to sell it off because she knew that the young boy with lost memories needed something to hold onto. Some sort of hope that he would figure out who he was and find his family once more. Luck hadn’t been on his side for the past ten years though so Victor doubted anything would come of it. At least not while here in Russia.

That’s when an idea struck him. Instead of working in the coal mines he could try to make his way to Barcelona. He knew with his limited education that it was in Spain, which although was many countries away was still a possibility. People traveled all the time, surely he could find someone making their way there and travel along with them. He could do whatever sort of work they required of him so long as he got there. 

It was at this time that he had reached the fork in the road with one path leading to the coal mines and the other leading to St. Petersburg. Surely if he didn’t make it to the coal mines they would contact the babushka wondering where he was and although he didn’t want to worry her he also wondered if it would hurt to try his luck in St. Petersburg. There was always the possibility of going back the same way he came to get to the coal mines later.

He took off his scarf and began winding it through his fingers as he considered the possibilities. It didn’t seem as if anything amazing awaited him either way he went and while he was lost in his thoughts he didn’t realize that someone had approached him, or rather something. It was the bark that pulled him back to reality along with the tug of his scarf. He lost his grip on his scarf as the dog playfully bounded around him holding it in its mouth.

“Hey, give that back.” Victor said as he held out his hand to the dog, not wanting to scare it off and make it so he had to run after it.

The dog just barked happily while crouching down and wagging its tail, thinking that it was a game.

“Where did you even come from?” Victor questioned as he looked around. The only marks in the snow were from wagons and other vehicles but there were no other footprints besides his own and the dog in front of him. 

“Let’s stop this game and have you give me back my scarf.” He offered as he took a step forward towards the dog. 

The dog jumped backwards and began going down the path to Saint Petersburg with the scarf still in its mouth.

“Hey!” Victor shouted as he started to chase after the dog, “You’re not going to like me when I catch you.” 

It would seem that his decision had been made for him as he continued down the way towards the city. Not that he could complain since it would give him the opportunity to try something new. The chase soon slowed to a walk as the dog continued onward thinking it was a game while Victor followed along. The dog obviously wasn’t trying to get far away so he didn’t worry as the snowy road soon changed into the road of the St. Petersburg.

The streets were busy with all kinds of people going from shop to shop. There were so many wonderful and different sights that Victor didn’t know what to focus on. The babushka had always gone into town to make purchases but her description was never as exciting as what he was seeing in St. Petersburg. Then again the nearby town was probably not even half the size of St. Petersburg.

The dog started barking to get Victor’s attention once more before darting off the road towards an older building. Victor chased after the dog who then disappeared into the building. Victor wondered why there was no one else in this area but continued on regardless knowing that he needed his scarf back.

The dog had gone through the front door with ease but Victor hesitated for a moment, unsure of whether this was where the owner lived. The last thing he needed was to be accused of trespassing into someone’s home when he was trying to find a way to Barcelona. He knocked on the door only for it to open up even wider.

“Hello?” Victor called out as he stepped inside only to realize the house was abandoned and full of dust. 

He noticed the dog straight ahead on the stair case sitting on the landing.

“Are you finally done?” Victor asked as he walked up the stairs, “I’m ready for my scarf now and to be on my way to Barcelona.”

The dog sat there wagging his tail as Victor took his scarf from its mouth.

“Thank you very much.” Victor said before petting the dog on his head.

He looked up to realize that there was a portrait on the wall in front of him. None of the people looked familiar but it was a family with a young child. They were obviously no longer in this mansion of a home since no one seemed to be close by. 

“Hey! What are you doing in here?” questioned a voice.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “This could be our guy.” Yuri stated as he pointed at Victor, “Just look at him and the portrait behind me. Don’t you see it?”
> 
> Phichit and Otabek stared at Yuri in disbelief for a moment, which almost caused Victor to start laughing because their expressions were so similar. Their expressions did change as they gazed between Victor and the portrait. Were they seeing something that Victor had missed? He wasn’t exactly sure considering he had just looked at the portrait himself and saw nothing out of the ordinary. 
> 
> “Now you see it!” Yuri said excitedly as he looked from his friends to Victor, “He’ll be our ticket to getting the reward.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For Shreya. We've bonded through sin. This is your fault. I did what you asked.  
> "On 1/7/17, at 3:45 PM, Shreya wrote:  
> > no i suck, you write it"
> 
> Bug me on tumblr to update if you want. Sorry for the delay.

“So much for Barcelona.” Victor thought as he froze for a moment upon hearing the voice question what he was doing there. The owner of what he thought was an abandoned property had shown up just in time to catch him and there would be no escape. Being arrested sounded ten times worse than working in the coal mines.

“I was just getting my scarf back from this dog.” Victor started to say as he turned to face the person who was speaking to him, “He bolted in here and I couldn’t just lose the scarf my babushka made for me.” There was nothing wrong with telling the truth. Honesty was going to get him further than lies, wouldn’t it?

He was surprised to see a young man who looked maybe a few years younger than himself standing at the bottom of the stairs. Surely someone so young couldn’t own this much property, unless they inherited it of course. The young man had dark black hair though, unlike the family in the portrait that Victor had just been looking at. 

“Wait a second…” the young man said as he stared at Victor for a moment while resting his chin on his hand. It appeared that he was deep in thought but Victor wasn’t quite sure what about.

“Phichit! Otabek! Come look at this.” He called out before walking up the stairs towards Victor. This caused the dog next to Victor to bark before moving himself next to Victor’s side. Maybe if needed the dog would be of some use besides stealing his scarf.

Victor was no longer sure what to expect because surely he should have just been told to leave and carry about his own business. Having more people come meant they wanted something from him and Victor didn’t have much to his name save for his pendant. He had to make a conscious effort not to grab it for fear of alerting anyone he actually had anything worth noting.

The young man stood next to him and began slowly inspecting Victor, as if he were some prized animal up for auction. “Just how old are you?” he questioned.

“I’m twenty.” Victor answered calmly, although his heart was racing. It was beyond him what was going on but if he made it out of this he would surely steer clear of abandoned buildings no matter what animal led him towards it.

“What is it Yuri?” questioned one of the two young men who had just entered the room they were in.

Victor looked at the one who spoke trying to gauge why all of them were so young. Obviously they were friends but surely they shouldn’t have been hanging out in such a place together. The one who spoke had a darker skin tone, he must have come from somewhere that received more sunlight than snowfall. He also had dark black hair but he didn’t seem to be as serious as the one called Yuri who was still looking at him closely. There was something about him that made Victor think he was more carefree than anything else.

“Is this your real hair?” Yuri questioned as he touched Victor’s hair and rubbed it between his fingers.

“Of course it’s my real hair. What kind of stupid question is that?” Victor answered before swatting away Yuri’s hand.

“Stop pestering the guy and tell us what it is Yuri.” stated the other young man in a more serious tone.

Victor could tell he was probably the most serious of the trio with a stone cold gaze and something about his expression which made him think it didn’t change very often. He was taller than the other one with dark black hair as well. Perhaps they all had to have black hair to be friends. At least this guy was on his side because who asked about a person’s hair being real? How could it be fake? It wasn’t his fault he had silvery hair that had a shine unlike an older man.

“This could be our guy.” Yuri stated as he pointed at Victor, “Just look at him and the portrait behind me. Don’t you see it?”

Phichit and Otabek stared at Yuri in disbelief for a moment, which almost caused Victor to start laughing because their expressions were so similar. Their expressions did change as they gazed between Victor and the portrait. Were they seeing something that Victor had missed? He wasn’t exactly sure considering he had just looked at the portrait himself and saw nothing out of the ordinary. 

“Now you see it!” Yuri said excitedly as he looked from his friends to Victor, “He’ll be our ticket to getting the reward.”

“They do look quite similar now that you mention it.” the taller one said, “Even if only because of the hair.”

“It’s still such a sad story though.” added the other one.

“I don’t know what you three are talking about but if you don’t mind I’ll be on my way now that I have my scarf.” Victor said as he turned to leave the same way he came inside.

“Wait just a moment.” Yuri said as he moved to stand in front of Victor, “Where are my manners? My name is Yuri and those two over there are my friends Phichit and Otabek. Otabek is the taller one. What is your name?”

Victor stopped as Yuri moved in front of him and wondered why Yuri was now deciding to act as if he had some manners. “I’m Victor.” he answered, “And I’ll be leaving now.”

“He even has the same name!” Yuri said excitedly while looking at Phichit and Otabek. “Were you named after anyone in particular?” he questioned.  
“I honestly don’t know.” Victor answered with a shrug, “It’s just always been my name.”

“He’s just the right age too, which is a bit strange but this could work.” Yuri said to his two friends before returning his focus to Victor once more. “You look just like the NIkiforov boy, you know that?” he asked.

“I don’t even know who the Nikiforov’s are.” Victor stated.

“How do you not know the Nikiforov name?” questioned Yuri.

“I grew up outside of this city in a small village. I don’t get to know very many names.” Victor answered.

“That means he’s never heard of Barcelona before.” Phichit stated.

“What does Barcelona matter?” Victor questioned, now a bit more interested in the conversation taking place.

“What do you know of Barcelona?” Otabek asked.

“That’s where I’m trying to go right now.” Victor answered.

“Perhaps we could kill two birds with one stone.” Yuri suggested, “We’re also on our way to Barcelona but are in need of someone to pretend to be a friend of ours.”

“You don’t have enough friends?” Victor questioned as he looked to Otabek and Phichit.

That response earned a grin from Phichit before Yuri replied, “This friend has been rumored to be dead but he is in fact very much alive and well. Sadly he was taken to jail in Thailand while we were visiting and wrongly accused of a crime. In order to get him out we’d need your help to pretend to be him so we can get the funds from his family trust to then get him out of jail.”

“You want me to impersonate your friend so you can get him out of jail?” Victor questioned.

“Only for us to get the money to get him through the justice system and back with us. It wouldn’t be anything difficult considering you look just like him. Plus, it will get you to Barcelona which you’ll be free to do as you please once we’re done.” Yuri said with a nod.

Victor paused for a moment considering his options. It didn’t seem right to run off to impersonate someone else but if Yuri was telling the truth it was all in the pursuit of getting a friend out of a terrible situation. It would also allow him to get to Barcelona where he would hopefully find out more about what his necklace meant as well as more about himself.

“Do you even have papers?” Otabek questioned, interrupting Victor’s thoughts.  
“I don’t know what papers you are talking about.” Victor answered.

“Then you definitely need us. To even get on a train out of Russia you need papers to validate who you are.” Yuri said.

“All right you have a deal then.” Victor said, “I’ll pretend to be your friend as long as you get me to Barcelona.”

“Let’s get started then.” Yuri said as he extended his arm to point Victor down the stairs. At the same time it almost felt to Victor as if he was being told that there was no backing out and leaving now so he walked down the stairs. The dog followed alongside him so at least with these three he’d have maybe one friend although it wasn’t human.


End file.
